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Hockey

Jared McCann is slated to be the top Londoner picked in the NHL draft

NHL prospect Jared McCann poses for a photo with his parents, Matt and Erin, at their home north of London, Ontario on Sunday June 22, 2014. The Soo Greyhounds forward is believed to be a top 20 pick in the upcoming NHL draft. (CRAIG GLOVER/The London Free Press/QMI Agency)

The NHL draft is, more than anything else, a system of assigning numbers to people.

Who's going first, second, third? How on Earth did the eighth-ranked guy on the list end up falling to 25th?

Jared McCann never got too swept up in all that hoopla.

When he was a kid, his dad Matt bought him a sweater of his favourite club – the Los Angeles Kings – “because I liked the colours and the name of the team.”

He left the back of the jersey blank.

“I don't really believe in picks and it doesn't really matter,” said the Soo Greyhounds forward, who will be the first Londoner selected, likely in the middle of the first round, Friday in Philadelphia. “Take a guy like Henrik Zetterberg who was picked in the seventh round (by Detroit, 210th overall, in 1999) and now look at him, right? It doesn't really affect me that much. I know what I'm capable of and know I can improve my game and play at the next level.”

Draft Day is relatively easy for the very top picks like Aaron Ekblad and Sam Bennett. They know they can only end up on a handful of teams, anyway.

McCann was contacted by pretty much every franchise. The scouts saw him waltz through London defencemen Nikita Zadorov and Brady Austin at Budweiser Gardens in December for one of the loveliest of his 27 goals this season. But GMs also wanted to delve deep into his pragmatic personality.

“They tried their hardest,” he said. “I just answered their questions as quickly and honestly as I could and move on from there. I feel like they wanted to know me as a person, but realistically, they want to know what I can do on the ice.

“I know I'll go to the team that wants me the most. I feel like I could've had a better season and probably improved (his 10th overall ranking on the NHL Central Scouting's North American list of skaters), but if a team wants me, they'll come get me.”

The former PEAC hockey academy student will miss high school graduation at London Aquinas this week to put on the ball cap and sweater of a to-be-determined NHL team.

For McCann, it's all about the heart-warming family hug after he is called to the stage.

“My family is the reason I am where I am and they're done everything for me,” he said. “I don't think I could ever thank them enough. It's been a crazy ride so far and hopefully, I can keep it going so I can actually pay them back some day.”

McCann has not been one to hide his appreciation.

When he turned 18 three weeks ago, he went to Perfect Image on Richmond St. and got a tattoo in honour of his mother Erin.

“She's had (multiple sclerosis) since she was 18 so I got the tattoo when I turned 18,” he said. “She had that and a form of cancer. I got (the ink) on the same leg. It's got her initials (E.M.) and a cancer symbol with a hockey stick through it. It was something I thought about a lot. She's done so much for me and I wanted to show her I care.

“She's definitely tough and I hope I get (his toughness) from her.”

A head injury in Game 1 of the playoffs at Owen Sound ended McCann's rookie OHL season. This past spring, he faced the same Attack squad in a first-round series, and scored twice in the opener.

His resolve and overbearing shot goes back to childhood games at home with his older siblings – brother Justin and sister Jamie – in Stratford.

“We started outside shooting pucks to see who would go in net, and it was usually me, because I'm the youngest,” Jared said. “I have some pretty good scars on my face from high sticks and stuff like that. My brother (adopted from Guatemala) played hockey with Huron-Perth (Lakers). He helped me with my skills, but he has stone hands, so I definitely didn't take those from him. My sister was more the enforcer. She threw me around a couple of times.”

McCann's arrival in London made an already strong Junior Knights minor midget team even better.

“I never once had to come down on him and say, 'Hey, you're not working hard enough,” said Rob Simpson, his old coach and now the London Knights assistant GM. “He led our team without having to say anything. When you have one of your best players on the ice early and staying late, naturally, the rest of the players think, 'if he's doing this, then I should be, too.'”

McCann had some reservations about the move from Stratford, where it felt like he knew everyone, to big London.

“I didn't know if I was going to be accepted, but everyone welcomed me with open arms,” he said. “I'll probably always live in London or Stratford, or in between. It's an amazing area. I went and watched a couple of Memorial Cup games and the atmosphere was ridiculous.”

He also followed the Stanley Cup playoffs and the Kings, particularly his favourite player Jeff Carter and fellow former Greyhound Jake Muzzin. They endured those marathon OHL bus trips and got the taste of the Soo's puck passion in their junior days, too.

“For me, it's more about stopping guys at the next level (like Carter) who are 6-foot-4, 220 pounds,” the 6-foot, 179-pound McCann said. “Points are not going to define me as player. Obviously, I can score goals so it's not something I'm focused on. It's getting stronger and I felt like I was more responsible in my defensive zone this year.